


Tales of the Judo Club

by Primrose Princess (SinfulExistence)



Category: Tokimeki Memorial Girl's Side
Genre: F/M, Romance, Some adult themes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-08
Updated: 2015-08-28
Packaged: 2018-04-08 08:08:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,446
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4297125
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SinfulExistence/pseuds/Primrose%20Princess
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Arashi had a plan.  That plan involved judo.  It didn't involve his club manager worming her way into his chest and making him feel things that were equal parts exciting and terrifying.  But she became as much a part of him as judo.  Arashi/Bambi, bits of one-sided Junpei/Bambi.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. How It All Started

**Author's Note:**

> There is a big post on my blog (link of which is in my main profile) regarding how I'm handling different parts of these Tokimeki stories and their translation. Please read before complaining about things such as the excessive Japanese or character dialogue. Thanks!
> 
> I can't really think of a character from the 3rd game that I don't think is absolutely awesome. Maybe Taiyou. He's just a bit too shota for me to handle. *wince* I have an exceptionally large soft spot for Arashi, though, and decided to write about him first. Not sure how well this story is going to flow. Considering the game takes place over three years, that's a lot of ground to cover, so at times this may seem like just a collection of one-shots that are connected by a common continuity. Hope that's okay!
> 
> Music Corner... You know, do you guys even care? lol! Will probably cease this section unless a demand rises for it to come back.

He would still remember how he felt that day at the Welcome Ceremony.

He felt excited. It had nothing to do with the principal, up at the podium as he spoke to everyone. Or the following moment where the class representative was called to the front. He'd been planning it for weeks now. Ever since that day at Habataki Castle, when he'd looked out from that tall tower and cried tears of mourning over the loss of his precious judo, which had become such an important part of his life now. He'd realized that judo was the one thing he just couldn't let go of. And while his parents prepared things for him to attend Habataki Academy, he had been plotting. The school, oddly, didn't have a judo club. He was going to change that.

Though that also brought another emotion to the table that day: anxiety. He was excited, but while the excitement ran through him like jolts of electricity through his system, dread and worry pooled in his belly. His father would be furious. If he was caught, there was no telling how things would play out, but he couldn't imagine it would have anything to do with him being allowed to practice judo any further. If he wanted to continue, he would have to be absolutely sure his parents never knew a thing.

Filial piety. It was something that he always strove for. He was always a good boy. Listening to his parents, trying to do right by them and make them proud. The last time he could really remember resisting them was, oddly, when he was first starting judo. He remembered that he was greatly against starting judo. It didn't appeal to him. But he was obedient and went when his parents told him to. After a while, he learned to love judo. And now it was being taken away if he didn't do something. He didn't want to disobey his parents, but for the first time, he had something he wanted so bad that even the idea of disappointing his parents couldn't dissuade him from carrying on with it in private.

Fujiyama Arashi loved his parents. But he loved judo, too.

"Please join our club!"

Arashi was standing at the school gates, handing out fliers to anyone he could manage, which frankly... wasn't a lot. It was a bit more clear as to why the school didn't have a judo club. The students were simply not interested in such a thing. He felt sad for them. Honestly, if they just tried it, they might fall in love with it, too, as he did. Then again, there was a matter of talent and he knew not everyone was cut out for it. This would be difficult.

"Please join our- ah?"

He was stopped short as a tiny little wisp of a girl walked up to him, her large eyes looking up at him curiously. There was no way he could teach her judo. She might break. It didn't stop her from speaking up, holding out a hand, "Hi. May I take one, too?"

Something was familiar about her. She didn't stand out all that much, to be honest. She had large brown eyes, much like a deer. Her hair was brown as well, though in the light, it had a sort of strawberry undertone that made it almost shine pink. Overall though, she was pretty average.

Oh right. He was starting to remember.

"Um... We are in the same class, right?" He hoped he was right and wasn't making an idiot of himself.

He was a bit relieved when she nodded, a bright smile lighting up her face, "Yeah. I'm Shinozaki Minami. Please treat me well."

The mystery of where he knew her solved, his head was cleared up, "Fujiyama Arashi. Please treat me well."

"By the way, what are those fliers?" The girl asked, her hand coming up again to request one. Without much thought, he gave her one with a short "here", watching as she skimmed over it with her eyes, her brows furrowing with thought, "Judo Association?" Association, not club? Well, now that she thought about it, she hadn't heard of there being a judo club at the school. She looked up at Arashi, who was looking a bit sheepish, "Yeah. Well, as far as club members... I mean, association members... I'm really the only one right now..."

He wasn't really sure what to expect. He wasn't exactly smart. He barely got passing marks and most people might shrug off his ambition on that fact alone. What he wasn't expecting was her face to turn upward to look at him, her eyes nearly shining in awe as she spoke, "Then, that makes you the founder, right Fujiyama-kun? That's pretty cool!"

He studied her for a moment, her shining admiration turning into mild discomfort as he stared her down, seeming to think about something. It was strange to find someone who actually listened to his words. Furthermore, it was odd that rather than tell him it was impossible or he couldn't do it, that she seemed almost encouraging. Encouragement... maybe he had found...

After a moment of being scrutinized, Minami shifted in slight discomfort, "What's the matter?"

He spoke what he'd started to think, his face oddly serious, "Nice. You're suited to be the manager."

This was the last thing she expected from his mouth, her face shifting from concern to downright confusion, becoming flustered, "Eeeh!? Um... Why do you say that?"

He couldn't help but feel something of a small victory in his chest at her words. It wasn't a "no." She was asking why. That had to mean she was at least considering it. Though he wished he had a better reason than "because you listen to me." It sounded pretty weak in his head and he doubted she'd continue to think about it with such a lame excuse.

At this point, he felt he had nothing to lose, and blurted frankly, "You are the only idiot who actually listens to me."

The small face twisted into a bit of a pout, those round eyes narrowing in frustration at his words, though she could only articulate a small noise in her throat of frustration, obviously trying to hold some choice words from coming from her mouth.

He didn't need words, though. The moment her frustration showed through, it clicked with him. It was so simple. Of course she would be his manager. There was no question in his mind. This girl would listen to him. She wouldn't toss aside his words like garbage. Not only that, but her eyes held a fire that got him a bit riled as well. She wasn't some demure miss who would sit at the sides, flattering the members and giving them the occasional water. No, he could see the kind of person who would be kind, but stern. Who would make sure that things were in order and that everyone was doing what they were supposed to. He could see all that in her expression. This was good. He didn't want a manager that would coddle everyone, after all.

He smiled despite her anger, continuing on, "Then your atmosphere..." This brought her up a bit short. He supposed she hadn't expected him to respond positively to her anger. "Yeah," he muttered absently, "Very good." He spoke more clearly and directly at her this time, ignoring the shock and confusion on her face from the recent turn of events, "Okay. I'm done with manager recruiting for today. I've decided on you."

Minami's face twisted into a cute little scowl again and he vaguely felt an urge to pinch one of those puffed-out cheeks, "Eh!? Wait a second." She seemed to calm down a little, her gaze moving off to the side. He saw a bit of doubt enter her eyes as she muttered, "Even if you say so, I..."

She seemed to be unable to figure out how she wanted to complete that sentence, so he cut in, his voice still rather confident about his choice, "I won't force you to join. But I'll always leave the position open for you. If you feel like it, just stop by. Well, later."

She watched as he hurried out of there, her hand coming up and hovering in the air as if she were about to stop him but decided against it, "Eh? ...Hey!" She gave a sharp sigh to herself. _He's gone... Just like his name. Arashi... storm._ She looked down helplessly at the flier left in her hand. There wasn't anything particularly fancy about it. It was rather plain with very sharp, manly kanji in the top-center of the page, followed by smaller text explaining the club. Did he write the kanji at the top himself? The handwriting was really nice.

She pushed her mind back into focus, sighing and leaning against a tree by the gate, staring through the paper in her hand. _Anyway, what should I do about this manager business...?_ Well, it wasn't like he was asking her to throw any guys down onto the tatami. That would obviously be impossible for her. She wondered if she was suited to it. He said she was, but she wasn't entirely sure. She hadn't really managed anything before.

Then again, wasn't this the sort of new experience she'd been looking forward to in her school career? What was the point of coming here if she was going to get scared at every little opportunity? Even if she failed, at least she'd tried and learned something from it.

She clenched the flier in her hand, a small grin on her face, "Okay, I'm gonna join the Judo Club as its manager!" She felt a bit fired up, now that she thought about it. This might turn out fun. She saw Ruka and Kouichi in the distance as they left the school building and waved to them, meeting them halfway so they could walk home together.

Arashi started another lap around the track, still having a few hours before the school would be locking up. Plenty of time to practice. He felt a bit proud of himself. He had a good eye for people with talent most of the time and he felt he really bagged a winner this time as far as their manager was concerned. He just hoped she would take the opportunity and join.

No, he'd seen the fire there. She was unsure, probably due to inexperience, but he could see passion bubbling just under the surface. Who knows? Maybe the experience of being the club manager would pull her more out of that shell and make her shine even more.

He hoped so. He wasn't all that smart and he wasn't sure how to even get the club official other than to try to draw more people in. He needed someone smart, who could figure out these things for him. The two of them could be a pretty awesome team. He was sure that between his strength and her brains and passion, they could make the Judo Club a reality. Despite the anxiety he felt, the thought was enough to make his chest fill with warmth. He'd make it happen!

Oosako Chikara watched with a wry grin, leaning against the gym building as he watched Arashi make lap after lap. "How much stamina does that guy have, anyway?" he chuckled to himself, his eyes glinting. Arashi wasn't the only one observing promising people today.

He didn't even have to ask her if she'd accepted. He could see her coming toward him after school by the shoe lockers, her friendly face set with a decidedly determined set of eyes. Good... Good! That was what he liked to see! He couldn't help the grin that spread on his face, getting a wry smile in return from her. She knew he assumed, but that he assumed correct, so it wasn't like she could really say anything about it.

He gave a slight nod of his head in greeting, "Shinozaki. Ready to start our club activities?"

She nodded back, smiling broadly, "Ah, Fujiyama-kun. Yes. I'll do my best!"

He felt pleased at her enthusiasm, "Yeah!"

He watched as the enthusiasm gave way to a more thoughtful expression though, her brow furrowed, "Hmm... Then what should I do?" She perked, "Ah, first of all, the clubroom..." She trailed off with a small feeling of dread at the sheepish smile that crawled onto his face.

Sure enough, he gave her the bad news, "We don't have a clubroom yet."

She wondered idly how he could give that information so boldly without looking all that ashamed, "Eh!? Really?" She inwardly groaned. She could see that her life as manager was already going to get messy.

"We aren't even a club yet. It's difficult to get a room."

And he says this as if they are discussing the weather! What a troublesome man, her club captain was. Well, not even that. As he said, they were still only an association. She supposed it was too much to ask to expect them to be set up as an official club already. "I-I see..." She sighed inwardly. Well, she signed up for this now. Not like she could back out. That and he seemed really happy about getting an official second member. He seemed to be having a hard time of it and she couldn't help but want to lend a hand in whatever way she could. She supposed she could talk to a teacher about a temporary room. Oosako-sensei, maybe? Or maybe Himuro-sensei, since he was in charge of their entire grade.

Her thoughts were broken into as Arashi spoke up again, "For the time being, we have to reserve a room in the gym daily for our activities. I already took care of it for today."

Minami blinked at that. He took care of it? Huh... This guy could be quite capable when he wanted to be. It wasn't that she thought he was entirely incapable, but she didn't think he'd plan that far. She felt a bit bad about thinking so low of him.

Still... the fact that they had to rent space in the gym each day was a bit disheartening, "So we don't even have a permanent practice room..."

Arashi shrugged a bit, "Yeah, pretty much. I'll tell you about the other stuff you need to know later on."

She felt a bit embarrassed that she'd said that last part out loud. That was just supposed to stay in her head. At least he didn't seem irritated by it. In fact, for the most part, he seemed largely unflappable. She supposed it was a good trait to have, though it made her more self-conscious about her little anxiety attacks. She pushed down the nervousness building in her gut and gave him a sharp nod, trying to smile confidently, "Okay, got it. Then let's do our best from now on!"

He let out a short, relieved sigh at her reaction, "Yup!" To be honest, he'd been a touch nervous when he saw the fire in her start to flicker. Even his optimism in their endeavor didn't stop him from worrying about if she would stick with him. He should have trusted in her more, as well as his own judgment. She had a nice fire within her. Even if it burned down to cinders, it only needed a bit of help to be burning bright again. He hoped she'd never completely burn out.

She grinned to herself, resisting the urge to pump a fist in the air. _Alright! I'll do my best!_

She followed Arashi to the gym, her head swimming with thoughts of gathering more members and talking to the teachers about a permanent practice room.

Minami had decided after the first week of club activities that, say whatever you like about his book smarts, the guy's physical prowess was rather impressive. Even though he was the only member, after a bit of recruiting, he would take the time to stretch out and get ready. Minami would jot down their attendance times and sit herself at the edge of the room as he began a number of sit-ups, push-ups, et cetera. The number of each he did was rather staggering. Sometimes they wouldn't be able to book a room and would resort to having their club activities on the track. Despite some rather enthusiastic attempts by both of them, they couldn't see to draw more members in. It was a bit disheartening, despite the sheer strength and stamina their captain showed. Sometimes she idly wondered if he was human, or if he was an android like Himuro-sensei.

She would definitely never say that out loud to either of them.

Saturday was an early day, but Arashi insisted on club activities being longer on those days rather than earlier. She didn't mind as much, since today they had a gym room. If they had been out on the track with zero shade and the sun beaming down on them, she might have felt the urge to kill her over-zealous captain.

She watched him as he did sit-ups, nearly growling out the numbers under his breath as he counted. He was nearing the end of his practice, she could tell. He was definitely tired. She walked over as "one hundred" left his lips, sitting down next to him as he flopped onto his back, arms outstretched along the floor as he relaxed after the strain. She let on a grin and placed a cold water bottle on his forehead, making him jolt and look up in confusion before his eyes slightly crossed to see the cause of the sudden cold wetness. She chuckled and opened her own water, "Good work today." She took a few sips of her water, hearing him gulping down nearly the entire bottle behind her back. She was considering nagging him for drinking while lying on his back, but decided against it. He seemed okay.

He let out a satisfied sigh after drinking the water, feeling refreshed, "Yup. Good work." He closed his eyes, one of his arms draped over them as he made a blind throw for the trash can. Minami rolled her eyes and reached up, catching the wild throw before tossing it properly in the trash for him. The smile on his face showed little remorse, knowing from experience by now what had happened without seeing it, "Thanks."

She rolled her eyes and sat back, putting her arms behind her and leaning her weight into them, "So... We should probably come up with more ideas to lure in club members. I mean, I think everyone in the school has gone through the school gates by now and heard our pitch." She noted the slightly sour look on his face, looking like he had a retort, but she was faster, "No, I don't think persistence is the right approach in this case. You can't annoy people into being members." She could swear he was ready to say something like "wanna bet?", but he wisely held his tongue. She had to grin a little at that.

He muttered a bit, "Do _you_ have any ideas?"

She shrugged, looking a bit sheepish now, "Not really. I was thinking some sort of event to invite people to, but it's not like we have enough members to really make that work."

Arashi sat up, looking thoughtful, "Hmm... that's not a bad idea. It might take some setup though..."

Minami didn't know whether to feel happy or nervous about his reaction. This could be really good or a lot of trouble. She wasn't sure which. He gave what she dubbed his "wicked smile" and the feeling just heightened. The first time she'd seen that smile, it was coupled with him using her as a scapegoat for Oosako-sensei while he ate his bento in class. It was something she associated with mischief and possibly bad tidings for anyone in his path. Of course, she didn't tell him this.

Still, seeing that look on his face, she could only guess what scheme was cooking in her captain's head. Hopefully he would keep things within reason.

Hopefully.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope this was a good start. Trying to do enough exposition that even someone not familiar with the series can pick up on things. I ended up translating yoroshiku after all (as "please treat me well"), but it still feels funny. :/


	2. Judo no Okaa-san

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yet another chapter (albeit a short one). Not sure if anyone is reading it, since I know this series is so niche, but I hope the few that read it enjoy it. I usually don't like fishing for kudos or comments, but they let someone know if their work is getting viewed and/or appreciated, so if you can spare any time and let me know how I'm doing or if you would like to see more Tokimeki stuff from me, please let me know. It gives me a better idea of where to redirect my focus.

Oddly enough, even in the face of the fact that there was no conceivable way that a single person could get through one-hundred challengers, the thing that scared him more at times was his appointed manager. He sometimes found himself wondering if he hadn't created a monster. An efficient, helpful monster, but a monster nonetheless.

Concerning the lack of new recruits in the club, he decided that a good way to draw in a crowd would be to challenge one-hundred people to judo during the Culture Festival. The problem, however, was finding a place to do this. It had been a few weeks since he had come up with this idea and the festival was fast approaching, when they ran into a strange man. He'd looked familiar somehow, but they weren't able to figure out who it was. Neither of them had realized they had merely stumbled upon a strangely casual school principal, or that their little talk with him about their club had moved him so. All they knew is that things moved fast after that. Oosako-sensei had told them of a clubroom that wasn't in use out by the gym and even offered to be the club sponsor. It was so much at once that Arashi had hardly been able to speak. He didn't think he'd get backing like this.

The clubhouse was oddly removed from the gym and track, closer to the tree line than anything at the school. It was nice, though, as it meant their practices could get as loud as they wanted without bothering anyone. It was like their own little house.

And Minami, he found, was probably the scariest housewife imaginable.

She treated the clubhouse pretty much like her baby. She was often the one seen keeping up maintenance with it. She also got super scary if Arashi left anything on the floor or left messes in general. She seemed to flow well into her role around then with other things, like creating training regimens with him. Of course, this meant teaching her the basics of judo. Sometimes it would be on a computer, other times he'd do demonstrations in front of her. She was already pretty good with her physical education scores, so she quickly grasped the concepts of what moves required which muscles and put the most strain on which part of the body. She became very good at sitting together with him and pointing out little tweaks he could make to his training regimen to strengthen him further.

Though she had a habit of putting a _bit_ more on his training menu than he'd planned. She seemed to have a good grasp of pushing him just past his limit, which was something he both appreciated and found frustrating.

It wasn't all scary intimidation, though. As much as he mentally griped at times about how quickly she really became in charge of the club, he couldn't deny that she helped hold the club together.

After the hundred man challenge, they had finally started to see some members come in. It was a small handful of first years at first. They were the same age as Arashi and Minami, but it still felt strangely like they were training a bunch of underclassmen. Arashi was harsh as needed and knew how to push his members to improve themselves. What amazed him, however, was Minami's capacity for the same.

She got mad at the boys leaving things around the 'dojo', as they were calling it now. She also had a strict no-food policy within the clubhouse. She made sure everyone's training menu was always a bit past their limits to push their stamina and she had no issues throwing extra training on people who were slacking.

But she was also able to comfort those who found it difficult and felt like giving up. She knew how to treat a myriad of injuries and was generally the first to run to the aid of a hurt club member. When a member had some sort of drama in their life that was distracting them, she was the ear to listen to their sorrows and let them flush it from their system so they could train anew.

She really did feel like a mother to them. Him, too. It was strange how she could feel motherly to them and yet still feel a bit masculine. It wasn't to say she wasn't feminine, but it was difficult to remember sometimes that she was a girl when she was generally right in the dojo with the boys, sometimes doing exercises with them, yelling at them about goofing off, and generally being as non-feminine as possible.

Well, he thought that, but there were moments that shocked him when he remembered she was, indeed, female. A good example being the school Christmas party. Honestly, he hadn't even recognized her initially.

He'd walked into the party to the end of the principal's Christmas greetings. He honestly didn't plan on going, but Minami had been rather persistent that he didn't miss an "important part of his high school life." He supposed he could see her point.

He scanned the room to look for her, but couldn't seem to see her anywhere. He half expected to see her talking to one of the Sakurai brothers, but Kouichi was absent currently and Ruka seemed busy talking to some other girl. The girl was rather pretty, he guessed. He didn't know why his eyes were drawn to some strange girl, but he couldn't help but give her a lingering glance. She was wearing a long white dress with no sleeves that stopped halfway down her calves and hugged her curves. There was a silk cloth around her neck like a choker that clasped at the back and then flared out into two long tassels that nearly met her feet. She had short hair but it was just long enough to be pulled into a short ponytail at the back of her head, small hair clips in the front pulling her hair from her face, revealing wide, doe-like eyes...

Oh crap. It was Shinozaki.

He felt something foreign coil in his belly. _That_ was Shinozaki? _She looks... well, she looks... um..._

He had found himself drawn toward her against his will and felt his face grow strangely warm when she turned to greet him with a wide, friendly smile.

Even after he'd gone home, he couldn't understand why he couldn't get the image out of his head of the beautifully-dressed Minami, looking up at him with Christmas lights dancing in her eyes and giving him a warm smile that twisted something in his chest.

"Fujiyama-kun! Fifty push-ups for zoning out!"

He groaned at the statement, but knew he had it coming and finished a few more sit-ups before shifting positions to carry out his punishment. There were a few grins, but the other members knew better than to laugh at Arashi. Everyone had been the victim of such a thing at some point or another. Plus, you did _not_ want to get caught laughing at Arashi. He was a calm guy, but revenge could be incredibly cruel at his hands.

He supposed that thinking about whether their manager was feminine or not when he was supposed to be exercising was a poor choice. He knew the consequences of losing focus around Minami when she was in full manager mode.

He wondered idly when he'd started even thinking about something so useless. By all rights, whether she was feminine or not was irrelevant. She was his friend and companion in this club and a damn good manager. Anything else was extra that wasn't needed.

He wondered if he should blame it on a certain newer member. His eyes moved to Niina as he thought this. Niina was definitely talented, but the kid tended to think and talk about things that weren't really relevant to Arashi. Maybe he was influencing him. He certainly never cared about girls before now.

He noticed Niina's eyes connect with his and gave him a stern look that practically screamed for him to get into gear and throw himself into his exercises. Niina complied in almost a panic. Arashi looked scary today.

Niina was, at this point, his star pupil. He was definitely already better than the rest of the first years that had started Arashi and Minami's second year. Hell, he was better than most, if not all, of the second years who had joined the previous year. His potential was staggering to Arashi. Stamina was a bit of an issue, but Arashi had ways to fix that. Niina had been intensely unwilling to join the Judo Club initially, but he seemed to enjoy it now for the most part. Arashi hoped they could keep him engaged. It would be a waste to see such talent not utilized. Most days, he got off on the bare minimum he could do. Other days, like today, he seemed to push himself harder than ever for reasons beyond Arashi's grasp.

Minami seemed to notice as well and came up behind Niina, pressing a cold water bottle against the back of his neck. Niina let out a not-so-manly squeal, his movements halting as his hands flew back to try to press warmth against his neck, "H-Hey!!"

Arashi watched from the corner of his eye as Minami grinned impishly at Niina and sat beside him, her voice playful but with an edge, "Careful, Junpei-kun, you're going to push too far." He didn't catch the rest of their conversation, the two laughing at words that didn't pass into his ear. _Huh... they're on a first-name basis._ It wasn't really a question or a statement, but somewhere in between. He couldn't help the tightness in his chest at that. Why should that make him feel strange? He and Shinozaki kept each other at a respectable distance. That was just how he liked it. So why was something almost like jealousy coiling around in his chest and making him feel uneasy? There was also the whole thing where Minami seemed to avoid the subject of how she'd known Niina before he came to Habataki Academy. Was it possible they were involved before...?

He hadn't realized he'd stopped his movements until he heard Minami's voice bark sharply, "Fujiyama-kun, you stopped again!" He inwardly cursed and eyed her, wondering what his next punishment was. She looked at him, ready to throw one out, but noticed his expression and was pulled up short. She wondered if there was something seriously wrong on his mind. Maybe being too hard on him was a bad idea. She noticed his expression change to something a bit more bitter, frustrated embarrassment in his expression. After reading the vibe he was giving off, she tried her best to look stern again, even if a bit of concern was still there, "100 sit-ups!"

Arashi was glad she didn't press the point and went about his punishment, keeping his eyes on the tatami mat to avoid her worried eyes. Sometimes he was glad she knew him as well as she did.

Oddly, that thought made the coiling in his chest loosen. Right... they _were_ close, in their own way. It was kind of comforting.


	3. The First Date?

Arashi let out a sigh from his nose sharply for what had to be about a dozen times by now, shaking his head, "Niina... Are you done _yet?_ " Surely it couldn't take a man _this_ long to pick his clothes. For goodness sake, he was a man, not a woman! He heard more rustling behind the curtain of the dressing room, Niina's voice calling out, "Not yet!" The older boy wondered to himself how he had even let himself get in this situation in the first place.

Oh right, judo. Specifically, the younger boy's promise to swap to a new regimen that Shinozaki had written up for him that Arashi approved of, but Niina initially wrote off as excessive. He couldn't quite remember how the discussion evolved from there. There was an argument between Shinozaki and Niina that resulted in the talk shifting to Arashi needing to get out more and do things other than judo, which then transitioned into his lack of proper attire. Arashi had interjected at that point and argued that his attire was fine, but Niina was insistent that he needed help, finally making a deal with Arashi that if he let Niina take him clothes shopping, he'd adopt the new exercise menu. It had sounded like an easy deal. He'd never really gone shopping with someone before for clothes, but Niina was another guy. How bad could it be?

He obviously hadn't seen Niina often in street clothes. If he had, he would have realized his mistake.

Of course, this had somehow devolved into Niina looking at his _own_ clothes to try on. _It's new from Hazuki Kei! I have to try it!_ he had said. Arashi frankly had no clue who this person was. All he knew was that it was somehow that person's fault that he was sitting in front of the dressing rooms, bored as all hell, with Niina trying on his _fifth_ outfit of the day.

"Aw damn, I was supposed to put this on under first."

Nope, that did it. Arashi sighed again and finally stood up silently, walking out of the store and into the connecting walkway. He stretched a bit, avoiding passing people as he moved to stand with his back to the railing overlooking the first floor. He supposed waiting out here wasn't too different than sitting in there waiting for Niina, but he needed to stretch his legs and move a little. Sitting for a long time with no activity made him uneasy. He considered going for a jog around the mall but squashed the idea. He'd already tried that before and the mall staff weren't too happy with him about it. He didn't see what the big deal was as long as he didn't knock anyone over, but his choices were obey or get kicked out.

He could just go home, but he didn't want to _completely_ abandon Niina. That felt cruel.

"Eh? Fujiyama-kun?"

He looked to his left to see Shinozaki standing there, having seen him as she got off the escalator. She rather surprised to see him there, not that he could entirely blame her. To answer her unasked question, he shrugged and nodded toward the store that Niina was still in, "Remember your deal with Niina to have him follow that new menu if I let him take me shopping? He wasn't joking, it seems."

She smiled and he was surprised, as well as grateful, that she didn't laugh at his misfortune. He looked around and saw that she was alone, raising an eyebrow as if asking right back what she was doing there. She gave him a sheepish smile, scratching her cheek lightly as she spoke, "Ah, well, I was here with Karen, but she was called away on some urgent family business. I was going to walk home, but it's raining, so..."

Ah, was it raining? That was no good. He didn't mind running in the rain too much, but it was a bit of a distance from the mall to his house and the last time he'd tried that, he'd caught a cold. Shinozaki had banned him from practice for days until he recovered. It wasn't something he wanted to repeat.

He noted Shinozaki just kind of standing there, neither of them speaking. It was a bit awkward, but he wasn't sure what to say.

She shifted her weight from one foot to the other, then spoke first, "Um... Aren't you shopping with Niina?"

Oh right. He was just kinda standing out here, huh? He shrugged and closed his eyes, trying hard not to sigh again in exasperation at Niina's antics, "He's preoccupied with trying on his _own_ clothes right now."

He heard her giggle and looked over to see her rolling her eyes, "Geez... I forgot there was a recent Hazuki Kei shoot. If I'd known you guys were coming today, I would have warned you." There was that name again. It never seemed to really stick with him for long, though. Though she wasn't too surprised by the turn of events, huh? He looked at her quizically again. It was sometimes nice that it only really took a glance from him and she knew exactly what he was asking. It was a bit strange too, but it saved him having to figure out how to word sometimes awkward questions, like the current one. _Why does she know about Niina's shopping habits?_

She scratched her cheek again and giggled awkwardly, "The last time Hazuki Kei was featured in a magazine, I was the unfortunate victim of a drive-by Niina-ing. He dragged me to the mall and proceeded to make me sit through a few _hours_ of him trying to look as close to Hazuki Kei as possible. It was exhausting." She rolled her eyes, "Even Karen-chan isn't that bad."

Arashi wasn't sure what to make of that info. It almost sounded like a date when you got right down to it, though why that would bother him was a bit of a mystery to him. At the same time, a part of him was relieved that she seemed to just view it as another event. An awkward event, at that. Though again, he couldn't quite place why such a feeling was nestled in his chest.

Before he realized what he was doing, he blurted out, "Hey Shinozaki? Do you have any shopping left to do? I could keep you company."

She blinked up at him in surprise, not sure where that came from. She raised an eyebrow after a moment, "You want to go into a girl's clothing store?"

He cringed as she brought that fact to light. Right, that would mean going inside one of those places. The last thing he needed was to be in that sort of den of femininity. He looked up at the ceiling, "Yeah, you have a point..."

She shrugged, "I don't have any shopping left to do, anyway. What about you? Is there anywhere you want to go?"

He shrugged as well, "Not really. I never really needed more clothes in the first place. Niina just dragged me along."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"..."

"..."

Okay, the awkward level was rising steadily.

He muttered, "Want to go to the food court?"

"It's under construction right now, isn't it?"

"..."

"..."

She perked up, "There's a video game store nearby."

"Do you play video games?"

"No."

"Me neither."

"..."

"..."

There was a much longer silence than before. After a bit...

"Ah, geez!"

He jumped a bit, then sputtered as he was suddenly taken by the wrist and dragged away, "Shinozaki?"

She didn't look back at him, instead continuing to drag him along, blushing at her forward actions, "Maybe we should just walk! We might find something to do."

Arashi fell into step beside her, her hand releasing him when it was clear he was following on his own. Well, he had to admit that anything was better than just standing there. To be honest, he really didn't know much other than judo. It was the entire basis their friendship revolved around, but when he thought down to it, he really didn't know much about her personally. He had no clue who she was outside of their judo manager and a student that got pretty good grades when exam time rolled around. Maybe he should ask?

He went to open his mouth, but she seemed to beat him to a subject, "So, Todomi-kun asked me to adjust his training menu. He said your form in the last big match is something he wants to learn to copy."

Judo. He wasn't sure if he was happy or not. Did he really have such a single-tracked mind? The obvious answer was yes and he knew it. Still, he felt guilty that he was forcing that subject on her all the time. Surely she had other interests, or got sick of always talking about judo with him. She was giving him an out, but he wasn't sure whether to take it or not. He caved in, his curiosity winning out, though he didn't entirely agree with the idea of Todomi's choice, "Oh?"

She nodded, smiling when she saw she had his interest, "Yeah. I told him it wasn't a good idea, though. His muscles are more in his legs than his arms. He also seems to shift his center of balance differently than you, so..."

She continued talking, Arashi nodding as part of him listened to her and part of him reflected on how amazing his friend was. She knew what to do to make the situation less tense, for one. As guilty as he had felt with judo dominating the conversation, he had to admit that he was relaxing a bit more now as they walked. Whatever tension had been there before was gone.

Then there was just how well she had been studying judo. Sure, she knew strength training and general physical education, but she had no experience with judo itself before joining their club. In just over a year, she'd gone from merely helping to plan people's training exercises to helping with their form and actual judo instruction. It made him happy that she took such an interest in judo that she had taken his lessons to heart and remembered it all. To the point where her opinion on Todomi's request was so in line with his own reaction that it was almost scary. He didn't even have to tell her that it was a bad idea. She already knew.

"Oh look, pretzels!"

He was shaken from his thoughts as her tiny hand closed around his wrist again, partially dragging him toward a stall where they were selling large pretzels. He huffed and bit back a retort about how he wasn't a glutton, but had to admit that he was a bit hungry. He got a plain salted one, while she got one covered in cinnamon. The two of them started to wander aimlessly again, Minami looking rather pleased, "I was afraid there'd be nothing to eat since the food court is under construction. I'm glad there are still a few places like this."

He nodded in his agreement, too busy devouring his pretzel to offer a proper response. He half glared at the giggle it drew from her, but didn't stop his snacking.

A lap and a half around the mall and another round of pretzels later, the two were in one of the stores, having finally decided that movies were something they could take a look at. He couldn't help but wrinkle his nose at the fact that she seemed drawn to romantic comedies. Well, she _was_ a girl and all, he supposed.

"Oh, nice! The third one came out!"

He looked over her shoulder and was actually surprised to see an action movie in her hand. As they went through the store, he learned a decent amount about her preferences. She liked romance, comedy, action, animated films... she was also rather receptive to kung-fu movies he suggested she watch, though she'd never actually watched one before herself. He also learned that horror movies scared her greatly. He logged this away for future use and Minami couldn't help but get a bad omen at the "wicked smile" that spread on his face.

He winced as she pinched his cheek a bit, giving him a scowl that looked a bit too cute with her cheeks puffed out in annoyance, "Oh no you don't, Fujiyama-kun! You're not getting me to watch any horror movies!"

He rubbed his cheek once she let go, smiling in a way that didn't look in the least bit like he was sorry, "Okay, my bad. We'll stick to kung-fu movies."

Minami nodded in satisfaction and led them out of the store, unable to help the small blush on her face as they both thought the same thing. _Wait, did we just agree to watch movies together?_ Somehow, this didn't sound like a bad thing.

Arashi heard her gasp excitedly and wondered if he should be scared or not. So far it hadn't been that bad, but who knew where this girl would want to go next?

She grinned at him impishly and dragged him along before he could protest or even figure out where she was homing in on. He only noticed as they were going through the doors.

A candy store. One that sold it by weight. He had this distinct feeling that sugar was something Shinozaki didn't need in excess. He looked down at her face, though, and found that it was hard to say no to that face. Not when she was beaming up at him, her cheeks a bit pink from the rush she'd been in to get there, her eyes practically sparkling with happiness.

Crap. He definitely couldn't say no.

He sighed in exasperation, but gave her a small, accepting smile that sent her nearly dashing through the store, picking this candy and that for herself. It wasn't like he didn't like candy himself. Sugar was a good source of energy and all. He was just a bit picky.

He couldn't help but get a smaller bag, getting mostly dark chocolate, but occasionally getting some hard candies.

"So this is where you went to!"

Uh oh. Arashi slowly turned his head to see Niina in the doorway, his arms crossed. The younger guy looked like he was warring between being angry at getting ditched and amusement at the entire situation he was witnessing. To think that Minami could actually get away with dragging Arashi into a place like this!

Minami finished paying at the register and skipped over to Junpei, smiling sheepishly at him, "I'm sorry, it's my fault I took him away. I got you some candies to make up for it!"

Junpei gave her a half-glare and took the bag offered him, "Yeah yeah, I'm sure." He noted that she actually had a second bag and this one was full of things she'd seen him get when they'd been here before. Shit, he had to at least somewhat forgive her now. Not that he was entirely angry at her or Arashi to begin with. He knew he could get a bit... carried away with clothes sometimes.

Arashi was battling with the new jealous feelings that seemed to hit him at the worst possible moments, even if he wasn't entirely sure why, and finding it funny just how whipped Niina could be. He paid for his candy as well and met them by the door, the three walking almost automatically together, even with no destination.

"It's stopped raining," Minami pointed out, looking up at the skylights over their heads to a somewhat cloudy but decidedly more dry sky.

Junpei hadn't realized it'd been raining badly earlier and blinked, "Huh. Those clouds still don't look too good. As much as I want to hold Arashi-san to his end of the bargain, maybe we should be heading home before the sky decides it is time for round two."

Fujiyama nodded in agreement, though he couldn't help but also be just wanting to get home and out of the shopping situation.

"Ah, crap! I forgot a bag. Hold on!" Minami and Arashi were left in the dust as Junpei dashed for the store Arashi had left him at before.

She couldn't help but laugh and give Arashi a pointed look, "You really did get him running fast, huh?"

Arashi grinned, "He was already fast, I just helped with his stamina problem."

She smiled and rolled her eyes. Yeah, the whole school had been witness to that. She was surprised it had taken Junpei so long to realize what was going on.

Her smile faded a little, giving way to a blush as she considered whether to ask him something that had been bugging her. It wasn't that the question itself really bothered or embarrassed her, but she was sure it wasn't exactly something that Fujiyama would be used to talking about. She was afraid of making him uncomfortable. Her blushing drew his attention though. He raised an eyebrow, encouraging her to ask, "Umm, so I was wondering... would you consider what we did today as a date-?"

"I'm back!!"

Minami jumped about a foot in the air as Junpei snuck up on them with almost ninja-like prowess. Well, more like snuck up on _her_ , judging from Fujiyama's minimal reaction. She'd been a bit too preoccupied trying to spit out an embarrassing question to notice him. A question that would likely not get an answer now.

Luckily, Junpei seemed a bit too enthusiastic to talk to Minami about the Hazuki Kei line he was trying on earlier to notice her leftover blush, or Arashi's complete lack of attention to the discussion. Arashi had more pressing matters on his mind.

 _Was_ it a date? He wasn't sure. Parts of it were definitely awkward and all, but there were a lot of fun things, too. He'd came here with Niina, but he'd really spent the bulk of his time with Shinozaki, so...

The three of them walked to Minami's house first, dropping her off before they went their separate ways to go home.

Minami barely managed to take her shoes off at the door and stumbled up to her room, laying in bed and hugging a pillow to her chest as she hid her face in embarrassment. That was such a strange thing to ask him! Why did she do that? She nearly rolled out of her bed when her phone went off, the mail icon blinking. She checked her phone and couldn't help the smile that spread across it.

**I don't think you could call today a date. Next time we'll have a proper date, okay?**

Arashi sighed to himself for what felt like the hundredth time that day as he entered his home, heading up to his room and nearly mirroring Minami as he flopped onto his bed, though without the girly pillow hugging. He heard his phone go off and looked at the return mail from Shinozaki, giving a smile of his own as a foreign yet warm feeling settled in his chest.

**Alright, but no horror. Let's stick with kung-fu.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is short! Also, there may be a bit between chapters. There are a few other tokimeki-related fanfictions I have in the works, plus my Ib one that I know some people are going to murder me over if I don't update it soon. Then there's the fact that the bulk of my Arashi route info I've been getting has been from the DS version and from a straight Arashi run. I'm currently working on a PSP run for the extra content, plus I'm doing an Arashi vs Niina PvP run of it for that extra bit of drama. >_> So there's that to look forward to.


End file.
